


Newton

by Suliana



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bittybones, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Family of Choice, Slice of Life, foster failure, oblique mentions of neglect, this is totally a self-insert and the most self-indulgent thing I've ever written
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-18
Packaged: 2019-03-27 02:32:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13871226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Suliana/pseuds/Suliana
Summary: An unexpected adoption, courtesy of Sansy_Fresh~





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SansyFresh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SansyFresh/gifts).



> Fresh, thank you so much for my Radish <3 I'm going to have fun with this and take a short break from the angst I've been writing lately (I lied, there's angst in the first chapter and I'm sure there'll be more). I swear it will also not take 16 chapters to give him a name. 
> 
> This is undoubtedly the most self-indulgent thing I have ever written and may or may not be a self-insert. *cough* That being said, this is the first time I've written Suli as a human - she's normally (read: almost always) a Homestuck troll.

Biting back some creative profanity, Suliana cracked an eye and glared at her cellphone.  Its bright screen was like the fucking  _ sun _ at the unholy hour of 3:38 that it was proclaiming.  A number she vaguely recognized flashed across the screen as she scrunched her eyes shut and fumbled her arm free of her nest of blankets, and it took four swipes for the call to pick up.

“What?” she hissed, refusing to open her eyes.  A sharp tug brought the comforter back up over her head as she snuggled back into the warmth.

Rustling in the background, then a strained voice.  “Hey Suli, I’m so sorry for calling you this early.”

It took a few moments for her mind to place the voice.  “Vicky?”  

“Yeah.  I’m so sorry to ask you this, but would you be available for a foster?”

“Hoarder?”

A sigh over the crackling line.  “No, that would almost be easier?  Will you-”

Suli was already sitting, the blanket pooling in her lap as she rubbed her free hand over her face in an attempt to seat her contacts properly.  “Half hour OK?”

“Yeah, see you in a few.”

* * *

Vicky likewise looked sleep deprived, but opened the back door of the shop with a tired smile.  “Thanks, Suli, I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your help.  Fresh dropped the little guy off earlier… the original family that adopted him… well, similar thing as what happened with Toby.”

Suli growled under her breath.  Toby was her latest “foster failure” - a chinchilla who had originally been adopted by a young family who had done none of the prerequisite research that should have been done before adopting any pet.  The poor baby was actually missing a toe as the mother of the family had, in a misguided attempt to trim his nails, trimmed one of his toes instead.  The local ASPCA was equipped to deal with horses and livestock and cats and dogs… not one-pound balls of fluff.  

Three weeks, she had held out.  Three weeks, and then she had come into the store, chinchilla on shoulder, wry look on face.  Vicky had laughed.  

“What is he?  My landlord still has the firm “no chupacabras” rule in place.”

Vicky cast her a sideways glance as she sobered, her curly black hair hanging limply down her back.  “He’s a bitty.”

* * *

She threw the file down on the far counter top, disgusted at ignorant pet owners in general, the ones responsible for this bitty specifically.  

The Radish sat on the center of the stainless steel exam table, knees tucked up under his chin.  His feet were bare, and drips of dried marrow discolored his jeans and green sweatshirt.  His golden eyelights were dim, hazy and unfocused, not acknowledging the humans over him.  

“I’m glad Fresh didn’t say who the family was, I’d definitely have some words to say,” Suli sighed, looking down at the Radish.  Both the cracks in his skull and the broken ulna were the result of his being manhandled by an unsupervised child, after the little guy had deconstructed some battery operated toy that had been left, neglected, on the floor.  Rather like the bitty himself - left unstimulated, he’d done what Radishes just  _ did _ when bored and lonely.    

He was shivering.  Oh no, that wouldn’t do.  

She fished through the small box of belongings that had been dropped off with him, pulling out a bandanna-sized blanket.  She stooped, putting her face below his level to be as nonthreatening as possible.  “Hey there little guy,” she murmured, not wanting to scare him any more.  “Can I cover you up?  Its pretty cold in here.”

Tiny yellow pinpricks latched onto her face, his unbroken arm noticeably tightening around his legs, the other cradled tightly across his midsection.  A tiny dip of his chin was all the response he gave.  

Very carefully, she draped the felted cotton over the little skeleton, tucking the corners around him.  “Lift your feet for me?” she asked softly, then swept the blanket around his bare feet as he complied.  

Vicky leaned on the doorjamb, prominent circles under her eyes.  “If you don’t want to take him, no one would blame you Su.  He’s going to be special needs for a while, at least until he heals up a bit.  Fresh recommended you, but we can pull someone from the list."

She glanced up at her friend, sticking her tongue out.  “It’s up to him, Vic.  I’d love to take him, but he’s gotta have a say.”  She shifted back to the skeleton, noting that his eyelights were steadier now, following her motions.  “What do you say?  Want to come home with me for a little while?  I have all sorts of knickknacks around the house, and you’d be free to mess with whatever you want.  Mi casa is your casa, and all that.”  She ignored Vicky’s groan at her mangled Spanish, green eyes focused on the bitty.  

The tiny skeleton had cracked a smile as she garbled the saying, then ducked his head and pulled the blanket tighter.  The set of his shoulders was tight, tense, as if he was fighting with himself.  

“Won’t send me back?” His voice was tiny, soft with grief, but smooth and mellow.  “Or get mad?”

Vicky made a choking sound from her spot in the doorway, the sound dying off as Suli waved her arm at her out of sight of the bitty.  

She set her elbow down on the edge of the table, her sweatshirt staving off the cold from the metal surface.  “Can I?” she asked softly, again waiting for his soft head-bob.  She held her hand steady as he shifted onto the flat of her palm, his weight barely noticeable.  She cupped him, letting her thumb run up and down his back, smiling softly as he leaned into the contact.  “I promise I won’t, little guy.  Let’s go home, yeah?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Suli and the bitty make it home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very much still slice-of-life stuff going on.

It hadn't taken long for them to leave the shop - all she had to do was sign a few forms.  Vicki had made copies, clipped them, and tucked them into the bag with the tiny skeleton's supplies, making a show of putting in the standardized adoption form at the back of the stack.  

Suli rolled her eyes, sure the bitty hadn't noticed.  He was still huddled under his blanket, but his eyelights seemed to have steadied.  "Ready to go?" she asked, again leaning down to his level.  He hadn't spoken since he had asked his hushed questions, instead just nodding or shaking his head when addressed.  She couldn't blame him, poor guy had gone through a lot.  

He nodded, yellow eyelights locking onto her then dropping immediately to the tabletop, phalanges digging into the blanket.  

She paused a moment, considering the best method of getting him into the car while keeping him warm enough.  A tug on her scarf had a loop hanging down, settled across her upper chest. and tucked inside the front of her zipped up hoodie.  She stooped again, holding her hand out to the bitty, letting him make the next step.  

He didn't hesitate, despite his trembling, reaching out with his good arm to wrap around her thumb.  She cupped her hands, carefully helping him settle into the hammock her scarf formed, then tucked his blanket in around him.  Satisfied that he was situated, she tugged her zipper up a bit more.  "Comfortable?" she asked, craning her neck awkwardly to check.

The bitty nodded, tucking the broken arm against his chest as he settled.  

Vicki gave her a slanted smile and held out the bag of paraphernalia, then pulled her into a careful hug.  "Give me a call and let me know, ok?" 

"Don't I always?" Suli came back with, pulling her hood over her mussed hair, then pushed her way out into the darkness.

* * *

 

The skeleton was asleep before she even hit the highway.  She made sure the heater fans were adjusted away from him and that her radio's volume was low enough, then made her way home, taking care on the icy roads.  

He didn't wake up as she let herself into her apartment, or as she made her way up to the landing.  He barely stirred as she unzipped her sweatshirt and carefully unwrapped the scarf.  The woven material was settled across her bed as she settled him down, then stepped to the kitchen.

The bag that Vicki had given her was dumped out.  The five pound bag of designer bitty food was scrutinized and immediately dumped into the trash can.  She bit back some angry words about shitty pet owners, pawing through the rest of the contents.  Couple changes of clothes, a spare sweatshirt, a few pairs of socks... a  _hairbrush_?  What did a skeleton need with a hairbrush?  Sneakers, a bitty-sized plate and set of cutlery.  

No toys of any sort.  No reading material.  Nothing to occupy a bitty of any variety, especially not a Radish.  

Suli ran a hand through her hair, still tangled from her hood.  What the hell even got into some people?  Why was it so hard for them to  _read_ up on what they were adopting?  Bitties were relatively common, yeah, but hell.  They were  _companions_ , not pets.  They had  _personalities_ , damnit.  

Vicki had thrown in an assortment of bitty medical supplies, likely for the little one's broken arm and the nasty crack on his skull, and what looked like a box of random bitty supplies she'd acquired.  That got put to the side, there'd be time to go through that later with him.

She bit back her frustration and pulled the bitty's few possessions into a pile.  She'd let the little guy pick through the pile to see if he wanted to throw anything out or not; it wouldn't be fair to do that without his permission.  Regardless, they were definitely going to have to go shopping.  No shoes, no personal belongings, minimal clothes... yeah, that was all going to be fixed, sooner than later.

She peeked into her room, still asleep.

Six am.  The bright side was she was off of work for the next two days.  Hopefully that was enough time to get him situated with a few things and work on getting him adjusted.  

But now, her stomach growled.  Yep.  Coffee time.

* * *

He woke up with a start, eyes bleary and not really making out where he was.  he struggled with the blanket, panic rising until a flash of pain from his broken arm left him panting, sweat beading on his brow.  

He was safe.  He had a new home, a new... owner?  He'd been so worried and fretful after the nice Fresh person had picked him up from NO.  His mind took a sharp left turn, not ready to start working through that.  

He sighed, cradling his bad arm across his rib cage as he kicked off his blanket, then pushed himself up and made his way carefully to the bedside.

There was a bed that he was on, a queen he guessed. The thick quilts on top of it gave a little as he walked, making him feel like he was walking on marshmallows.  The rest of the room was small, dominated by a bookcase and a dresser.  A roll of... something, he wasn't sure what it was, sat on top of the nightstand, blocking half the television that sat there, with a roll of what looked like wire next to it.  From beyond the door, in the kitchen? living room? he could hear a television going in the background.

His phalanges itched to go exploring, but that had already gotten him into trouble once.  He didn't want to be a fuckup a second time, didn't want to get sent back...

He choked back a whimper and slumped to his knees, barely holding back tears as he looked down towards the floor.  The bed was dizzingly high, and this time the whimper did break through.  Almost all of his magic was tied up in keeping his arm stable, there just wasn't going to be enough available to shortcut to the floor.  

He slumped.  Would the human even hear him if he _did_ call for her?  He would not cry.  He would _not_ cry.

He cried.

* * *

Suli hummed into her coffee mug before reaching over to flip the eggs in the pan.  The toast and bacon was already plated, both for herself and the bitty, and as soon as the eggs were done she was going to go wake him up.  The television droned in the background, a playlist of documentaries streaming off her laptop provided just the right level of background noise.  The theory of relativity was always interesting, and when she actually dedicated time to  _listening_ , it was actually very fascinating.  

There.  The eggs done, she flipped the gas off and dumped a serving of eggs onto her own paper plate, and the little guy's plastic one.  The fry pan hissed as she dumped it into the sink, scrunching her nose at the clatter.  She set the coffee mug down, then cracked her neck and made for her bedroom.  

Her heart almost broke in that moment.  The tiny bitty, who's name she hadn't gotten yet, was hunched on the end of the bed, in a position similar to what he'd been in at the shop earlier.  Yellow magic tears rimmed his eyes, staining his cheekbones, and she wasn't entirely sure he was even aware she was there as she settled onto her knees at the bedside.

She reached out, gently using her fingertip to brush the tears from his cheeks, then began stroking gently along his spine.  "Hey little guy, talk to me?  What's wrong?" she murmured, reaching across the bed and snagging his blanket.

He leaned into her finger, whining when she pulled away to drop the blanket across his back, then reaching out to snag her finger with his good arm.  His tiny fingers dug in, and he buried his face into her palm.  He shook his head, not speaking, just sniffling softly.

Suli let him cry himself out, then scooped him carefully up, cradling him to her chest.  He wiped his tears onto her shirt's cuff before she made to set him down on the kitchen counter.  

His eyelights hazed, then grew huge, staring up at her, then at the plate in front of him, then back up.  

"Hungry?" she asked as she pushed the bitty-sized mug towards him, carefully splashing in a serving coffee.  

His jaw quivered, then he nodded quickly, a clear look of amazement still on his face.  She chose not to comment on her suspicions being proven, the poor baby shouldn't be amazed by a simple breakfast of eggs.  No, that was evidence that he was essentially being starved by his well-meaning former family.

"Go ahead then," she punctuated her words with a tiny nudge.

He fell into his dish like a starving man, and again, she had a sneaking suspicion that wasn't far from the truth.  Without him asking, she pushed pieces of bacon from her plate onto his, and those, too, vanished in short order.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe he'll get a name next chapter.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: I really am a foster failure. My rabbits Scylla and Charybdis were adopted from a breeder who thought her move was temporary (joke was on me), Umberto the crested gecko needed temporary (which became permanent) rehousing after he attempted to knock up every tank-mate he ever had (he's literally a bara gecko) and Toby the chinchilla's story is true as presented. I am also legit on the call list for the ASPCA if they need an emergency foster for exotic babies. My anger at people who don't research the pets their adopting is real.


End file.
